Dam.



w. M. RANSOM.

DAM.

, APPLICATION FILED MAY 11, 1908. 7

$99,703., Patented Sept. 29, 1908.

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-W. M. RANSOM.

DAM.

APPLICATION II LED MAY11,1908.

Patented Sept, 29,1908.

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ATTIJHNE C W; M. RANSOM.

DAM.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 11, 1908.

Patented Sept. 29, 1908.

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DAM.

APPLIOATIOKIILED un 11, mos.

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' W M. RANSOM.

DAM.

APPLICATION IIPED MAY 11, 1908.

Patented Sept. 29, 1908. 5 snnnrs-snnfl 5.

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UNITED STATES PATENT onion.

WILLIAM M. RANSOM, or WARREN, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR or ONE-HALF TO FRED M.

HOADLEY, OF PROVIDENCE,

RHODE ISLAND.

DAM.

' Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 29, 1908.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM M. RANSOM, of Warren, county of Bristol, and State of 'Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in- Dams and I do hereby declare the following specification,

taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the same, tobe a full, clear, and exact descri tion thereof.

The present invention re of dams known as hollow gravity dams and more particularly to such dams when constructed of concrete.

One object of the invention is to provide a dam which is better adapted to resist a down-stream sliding of the dam under the pressure of the water'thereon thanis the case with. dams of this character as heretofore constructed.- A hollow gravity dam embodies a seriesof buttresses, and as such dams have been heretofore constructed, these buttresses have been arranged parallel with the flow of the stream and consequently parallel with each otlmr.

One feature of the present invention consists in providing a hollow gravity dam the buttresses of which are arranged at an angle to the flow of the stream and angularly with relation to each other, by. which construction and arrangement of the buttresses a fiuch greater resistance to the tendency of the dam to slide down stream is afforded.

Another object of the invention is to provide a dam of such construction that the strains set u therein will be largely compressive strains rather than tensile strains. As is well known, concrete has a much greater capacity to resist compressive strains than it has to resist tensile strains. A dam, therefore, the construction of which is that v the strains set up therein will be largely comwhich is necessary where considerable'tensile:

strain is to be resisted, may be largely, and in some cases entirely, eliminated.

Another feature of the present invention, therefore, consists in providing a hollow gravity dam in which the buttresses are connectedat one or more v by arches, whereby when the buttresses, the

ates to that type .tion above referred structure will have sired may points in their length arches, and the deck or flooring are all united together, .a solid structure is produced, andone in which the strains will be largely compre'ssive strains.

, A further feature of invention consists in 6'0-- the combination in one-and the same dam structure of the angularly arranged but tresses constituting the first feature of invento, and the arch construction constituting the second feature of 65. invention referred to, whereby'the resulting great capacity to resist sliding and also to withstand any racking strains thereon, and each section of which will be solid and stable in itself.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a dam embodying the features of invention referred to. Fig. 2 is an elevation of a portion of the down-stream side of the dam. Fig. 3 is a plan view of a corresponding portion of the dam. Figs. ,4

. and 5 are corresponding views to Figs. 2 and;

3, butshowing a modified construction.

While a dam embodying the features of the? present invention might be constructed er -so material other than concrete, it will be understood that the dam shown in the draw' *ings is -to be. constructed of concrete or similar material.

The dam shown comprises a base A which is shown as a natural base, but which if debe a constructed-or artificial base, buttresses B, anda deck or flooring C, with the spill-way D. As shown in the drawings, the buttresses B, instead of being arranged arallel with the flow of the stream and parallel with each-. other are arranged at an angle to the flow off the stream and at an angle to each otherZ--' In the preferred constructionshown in Fig.-: .95= 3, both the up-streain ends and the down-. stream ends ofthe buttresses are directly united together, the buttresses thus forming a serrated structure, as shown in Fig. 3. In somecases it may be desirable not to bring the approaching own-stream ends of two adjacent buttresses together, and so that they may be directly united with each other, but instead to leave such downT-s'tream ends separated a greater or less distance, as hown' In Fig. 5.

- In the dam shown in the drawings two series of arches are. provided, one series of arches E being located at or near the downstream ends'of the buttresses and the other g series of arches F being located at a point between the downstream ends of the buttresses and the up-stream ends-thereof. In the construction shown'in Fig. 3 the arches E are all .arran ed in line with each other length wise of t e'dam, whereas the arches F are staggeredas shown in Fig. 3. If desired,

1 however, the arches F, instead of being thus staggered','may be arranged in line with each other, as shown in Fig. 5. In the construction shown in'Figs. 2 and 3, in which the down-stream ends of the buttresses are directly united together, there is an arch E between two adjacent buttresses, and then the next arch 'E comes between the next two adjacent buttresses. In the construction 2'5 adjacent buttresses.

I shown in Figs. land 5, however, in which the I down-stream ends of the buttresses are not I members located in the deck or flooring and extending widthwis'e of the dam, and such reinforcing rods or members 0 are shown or indicated by dotted lines in Figs. 3 and 5.

Ifrdesired,short reinforcing rods f may 4.0 likewise beernployed in the arches F,but, as

[will be seen from the drawings, such reinforcing rods f when employed do not extend the entire length of the dam and do not extend through or across.the buttresses, but

are merely short rods which simply extend from one buttress to the next.

With the buttressesof the dam arranged at an angle to the flow of the stream instead of parallel therewith, it will be seen that any tendency-of the dam to slide in under the pressure of the water thereon will be resisted by reasonof such angular arrangement to a much greater extent than is the case where the buttresses are arranged parallel with the flow of the stream. Moreover with such angular arrangement of the buttresses the dam is much better adapted to esist any racking action thereon, such as x ould tend to turn the buttresses about their axes of revolution byreason of the fact that the axes of revolutiori'of adjacentbuttresses are not parallel, but are instead at an angle to'leach other. Thus under any racking action, instead of both buttresses tendingto turn in reinforcing members extending lengthwise the same direction and about parallel axes of revolution, one buttress will tend to turnin one direction andthe other in another, and any such tendency of the buttress to turn I will, by reason of the angular'arrangement of the buttresses, be resisted and practically prevented by the deck or flooring which connects the buttresses together. "In other words, with such angular arrangement of the buttresses, two adjacent buttresses cannot both turn on their axes of revolution without first rupturing the intermediate connecting flooring. It will be further seen that this capacity of the dam to resist the eficctof any racking action thereon is further increased and the dam as a whole greatl strengthened so by the employment of the arclies located between and connecting the buttresses and by the combination of such arches with the angularly arrangedzbuttresses referred to;

It will be further seen, as above pointed out, that with a dam constructed as shown and described each and every section of the' dam is solid and stable in itself, and consequently the dam may be built in sections comprising, for instance, two buttresses with their connecting arches and connecting flooring, and such section will be entirely stable and does not need the assistance or support of the adjoining sections to enable it to resist anystrains that may be imposed thereon, and itis by reason of this fact that when the dam is constructed of concrete it is not necessary to employ reinforcing rods or other of the'dam to hold the portions of the dam structure together, as has heretofore been necessary in the construction of hollow gravity dams of concrete.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A hollow gravity dam embodying buttresses arranged at an angle to the ilow of the stream.

2. A hollow gravity dam'embodying bill)" tresses arrangedat an angle to the flow of the stream and having the down-stream ends of the converging buttresses united together.

3. A hollow gravity dam embodying buttresses arranged at an angle to the flow of the stream and a flooring connecting'said buttresses. I

r 4. A hollow gravity dam embodying buttresses and arches located between and connectingadjacent buttresses.

5. A hollow gravity dam embodying buttresses, arches located between and connecting adjacent buttresses, and a flooring connecting said buttresses and arches.

6. A hollow gravity dam embodying buttresses and two series of arches located between and connecting adjacent buttresses, one series of arches being located at or near I the down-stream ends of said butfiresses, and

the other series of arches being located at a point between the down-stream ends and the up-stream ends of said buttresses.

. 7. In a hollow gravity dam, the combination of buttresses arranged at an angle to the flow of the stream, and arches/located. be tween and-connecting adj ac'ent. buttresses.

8. In a hollow gravity dam, the combination of'b'uttresses arrangedat an angle to the flow of the stream and having the downstream ends of the converging buttresses dill'ectly united together, and arches located at or near the "down-stream ends of the buttresses and between those buttresses whose ends are not thus united.

9. In a hollow gravity dam, the combination of buttresses arranged at an angle to. the

flow of the stream, and two series of arches located between and connecting adjacent buttresses, one series'of arches being located at or nearthe down-stream ends of the buttresses, and the other series of arches being located at a point between the down-stream ends andthe up-stream ends of said buttresses.

10. In ahollow gravity dam, the-combination of buttresses arranged at an angle to the flow of the stream, arches located between and connecting adjacent buttresses, and a flooring connecting said buttresses and arches.

11. In a hollow gravity darn, the combina tion of buttresses arrangedat an angle to the flow of'the stream and having the downstream ends of the converging buttresses directly united together, arches located at ornear the down-stream ends of the buttresses and between those buttresses whose ends are not thus united, and a flooring connecting said buttresses and arches.

1'2. Ina hollow gravity dam, the combination'of buttresses arranged at an angle to the .flowof the stream, two series of arches loa WILLIAM M. 'R NsoM. Witnesses:

I W. H. THURSTON, J H. THURSTON. 

